Bruce Springsteen just couldn’t help himself—and now he’s learning what happens when you take shots at Donald Trump.
During a concert in Manchester, England on May 17, Springsteen launched into another political tirade, slamming the Trump administration as “corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous.” It wasn’t the first time—he’d said the same thing three nights earlier at the same venue—but this time he made it clear he wasn’t backing down.
“This is Land of Hope and Dreams,” he declared to cheers, doubling down on his anti-Trump rhetoric just days after Trump fired back on Truth Social.
Trump didn’t hold back. The 45th President called Springsteen a “highly overrated” artist who ran off to another country to trash America’s leadership. “Never liked him, never liked his music,” Trump wrote. “Just a pushy, obnoxious JERK… this dried out ‘prune’ of a rocker ought to KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT until he gets back into the country.”
Springsteen, for his part, continued using his European tour as a platform for political messaging, telling the crowd, “In America, they are persecuting people for using their right to free speech and voicing their dissent.”
Several artists tried to show solidarity with The Boss. Pearl Jam performed “My City of Ruins” at their Pittsburgh show on May 16, while Jason Isbell covered “Cover Me” in New Jersey. Meanwhile, the American Federation of Musicians jumped in, issuing a statement defending both Springsteen and Taylor Swift—who Trump also took a swipe at, questioning whether she was still “hot” after he said he “hated” her.
The union declared they “won’t remain silent” as their members are criticized, adding that musicians have the right to speak out politically without retaliation.
Springsteen, whose music was once played at Trump rallies, has long been a critic of the former president. But this is the first time he’s used the stage on his European tour to openly escalate the fight.
The E Street Band is currently traveling across Europe on their “Land of Hope and Dreams” tour—but for a guy who claims to sing about America, Springsteen seems awfully comfortable bashing it from abroad.
